Patio season is one of the best seasons in Cleveland, but the warm weather is also very accommodating to a celebration or night out in a beer garden. Be careful not to mistake a beer garden for a patio, as gardens are more communal, bringing large groups of people together at a limited number of – usually picnic-style – tables in an outdoor area. Whether you’re looking for authenticity, live music, or a calm and cozy evening, the following restaurants and bars have you covered. Step outside, get some fresh air, and enjoy a delicious brew in a local beer garden. It could end up being your new favorite warm weather drinking locale.

The Barking Spider Tavern is a Cleveland classic, located in a somewhat obscure area within the Case Western Reserve University campus. This bar places value on live music and quality, cozy time with loved ones. The listening room is intimate and warm, making the perfect area for listening and drinking during cooler months, however, when the weather turns around, the small beer garden opens up and becomes a casual social area. The picnic tables are close to the building, so you can still hear the music, and there’s ample tree cover and sunspots for those that want shade or vitamin D. Bonus: the bar and beer garden is pet friendly.

Sterle’s Country House is known for its food, polka performances, and authenticity. Craft brews, schnitzel, live music, and a new owner have all worked together to propel this Slovenian country house as one of Cleveland’s favorite spots. Szemerszky’s Bier Garden was added in the past few years as an authentic and refreshing outdoor seating area, perfect for a gathering of friends and family. Picnic tables and plenty of green space characterize this garden as a great little retreat. There’s also an outdoor bar and grill, serving specially brewed beers, sausages, kabobs, and sandwiches.

Cleveland’s Hofbrauhaus is always busy, filled wall-to-wall with dancing beer drinkers. If you can manage to get inside on busy days, you’re in luck, especially if it’s not so pleasant outside. If it’s nice enough, the beer garden is equally as enticing. Plenty of picnic table seating in front of the building makes a large, casual, and slightly quieter area to gather with friends and family over an oversized German brew. This is a beer garden in its prime form with crowds, music, and flowing suds.

Coined as Cleveland’s first American beer garden, Market Garden Brewery is the West Side Market’s boozy neighbor. The food and drink here is exceptional, with housemade brews and locally sourced ingredients. The beer garden outside is adjacent to the West Side Market side of the building and is landscaped with some trees and flowers when the climate allows. The area, although it’s located on a fairly busy strip, feels sheltered and isolated, as if you’re actually in a garden with a bunch of friendly strangers, volume, and plenty of brews.

Parma’s European inspired restaurant and beer garden, Da Schnitzel Haus, offers traditional cuisine featuring seasonal ingredients and authentic German recipes. The outdoor beer garden is heated and offers drinks and food in a cozy atmosphere for a toned down experience compared to some of the other gardens on this list. The patio can also be reserved for parties if you’re looking to get a larger group accommodated in an atmosphere such as this.

Kaitlin Dershaw Durbin has spent the past 7 years living in and loving Cleveland. She enjoys making new discoveries, especially when it comes to the local food and arts community, and sharing them with others, hoping to spark similar love for the city in others. Find her other local profiles at http://www.axs.com/contributor/kaitlin-dershaw-durbin-axs-contributor-631